1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a belt lock for a safety belt. Such belt locks are fundamentally known and serve to reliably and releasably latch the belt tongue of the safety belt after the belt has been put on.
2. Description of Related Art
An electrical signal which gives an indication of whether a safety belt has been put on can be necessary for some applications, in particular in motor vehicles. A signal of this kind can be used to actuate warning devices which signal to the vehicle occupants that the safety belt still has to be put on. Moreover, a signal of this kind can be connected to an airbag control, whereby the airbag can be triggered earlier if the person located on the associated seat is not belted in, in order to offer the greatest possible protection. In just the same way a triggering of the belt tensioner can be prevented when the relevant belt is not in use.
Belt locks in which an electromechanical switching element is incorporated, which detects the latching of a latch element which latches the belt tongue, are fundamentally known. Such devices have, however, the disadvantage that the switching element always exerts a force on the latching element which is opposed to the latching direction. This is undesirable because in this way a permanently reliable operation is not ensured. Moreover, the danger exists that the switching device will already transmit a signal when the belt tongue is admittedly engaged in the belt lock but not reliably latched (pseudo-latching).